California PRK Surgery

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California PRK Surgery

When a patient is interested in having laser eye surgery performed to correct a vision problem they may have, they may be a good candidate for PRK surgery. This is photorefractive keratectomy surgery that is performed with a laser. Many people in California opt for PRK surgery because it is less invasive and the results are much better than other laser surgeries. An eye surgeon in California will determine if the patient is a good candidate for this surgery. The laser surgery can correct a person who suffers from nearsightedness or farsightedness even if they need astigmatism correction.

During the surgery, the eye doctor will place liquid anesthetic in the eye to numb this area. This prevents a patient form feeling any pain from the surgery. A laser will penetrate through the different layers of the eye to the cornea which the laser will reshape. Many vision problems are due to the odd shape of a personís cornea. Usually one eye is done at a time, so the vision is not completely distorted at once. It can take a while to heal so this is the best option for people who need both eyes corrected.

PRK surgery in California can cost an average of $1,500 per eye depending on the severity of the vision problem. People with multiple vision problems may be higher in price. The cost may be a bit higher when performed in a major metropolitan area. Certain suburban upper class areas in California can have higher rates for this type of surgery. A surgeons experience and quality of performance can impact the price of this particular eye surgery. This procedure is considered to be an elective procedure so most insurance companies do not cover the cost. There are plenty of surgical eye centers that offer payment plans or financial assistance to help with the burden of the cost.

After a person has PRK surgery performed, they will begin to see their corrected vision enhancements within one to three months. This is a bit longer than with other laser surgeries such as LASIK and LASEK. There is a big benefit to this procedure over the other laser surgeries. This procedure does not use a blade to cut through the corneal flap and so it causes less damage to this area of the eye. The epithelium layer of the eye is removed and this can enhance the refractive light correction.